Springsteen to be inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Friday

Oct 11, 2013 at 5:16 PM

Via NJ.com

This weekend, Bruce Springsteen will be inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the country’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies. The academy brings together each generation’s most influential thinkers and leaders, and conducts nonpartisan policy research in response to society’s needs.

Society has spoken: We need rock ‘n’ roll.

For anyone who fails to take the genre seriously, may I present to you the list of 198 inductees. Like the Kennedy Center Honors, this accolade probably falls into “I’d have to explain it to my father” category for Bruce, but I’m sure he’s delighting in yet another way to prove the nuns back in his Jersey Catholic school were wrong about him. This is, after all, an organization whose first class of inductees included Benjamin Franklin and George Washington!

This year’s inductees in the performing arts category also include fellow Kennedy Center honoree Robert DeNiro, as well as Herbie Hancock and Sally Field. But given how greatly his career has been influenced by the music and politics of his friend Pete Seeger, I’d guess it’s a special honor to be inducted alongside the folk legend. The pair have performed together a number of times, including at Seeger’s 90th birthday party, President Barrack Obama’s inauguration, and, above, at a Woody Guthrie tribute. Perhaps they will again?

Of course, we don’t know if Bruce or Pete will even show up for this invite-only event, which will be held Saturday at the organization’s headquarters in Cambridge, Mass. If you’re in the area this weekend, keep your eyes peeled, and make sure you know “all the verses,” just in case.

Fast Tube by Casper

Fast Tube by Casper

Fast Tube by Casper

Deb Filcman

Via NJ.com

This weekend, Bruce Springsteen will be inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the country’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies. The academy brings together each generation’s most influential thinkers and leaders, and conducts nonpartisan policy research in response to society’s needs.

Society has spoken: We need rock ‘n’ roll.

For anyone who fails to take the genre seriously, may I present to you the list of 198 inductees. Like the Kennedy Center Honors, this accolade probably falls into “I’d have to explain it to my father” category for Bruce, but I’m sure he’s delighting in yet another way to prove the nuns back in his Jersey Catholic school were wrong about him. This is, after all, an organization whose first class of inductees included Benjamin Franklin and George Washington!

This year’s inductees in the performing arts category also include fellow Kennedy Center honoree Robert DeNiro, as well as Herbie Hancock and Sally Field. But given how greatly his career has been influenced by the music and politics of his friend Pete Seeger, I’d guess it’s a special honor to be inducted alongside the folk legend. The pair have performed together a number of times, including at Seeger’s 90th birthday party, President Barrack Obama’s inauguration, and, above, at a Woody Guthrie tribute. Perhaps they will again?

Of course, we don’t know if Bruce or Pete will even show up for this invite-only event, which will be held Saturday at the organization’s headquarters in Cambridge, Mass. If you’re in the area this weekend, keep your eyes peeled, and make sure you know “all the verses,” just in case.